


From One Moment to the Next

by Aquila_Star



Series: Powers of Persuasion [17]
Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, M/M, hang in there, more plotty goodness, no seriously it's necessary
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-05
Updated: 2016-05-05
Packaged: 2018-06-06 12:43:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6754252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aquila_Star/pseuds/Aquila_Star
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fili had been utterly clueless. He'd had no idea it could happen like that, so quickly, without warning. Suddenly, his life had taken on a new purpose, one unlooked for but most welcome.</p>
            </blockquote>





	From One Moment to the Next

Fili stood outside on the small balcony attached to the main room of Bard's house. The room where Kili had been laid out in near death only a few short hours ago. The thought chilled him, despite the certainty he now had that his brother would live. Seeing him like that, the black veins spreading from the arrow wound in his leg, travelling to his heart in mere hours. Fili remembered the glassy, clouded look of his eyes as the poison had begun to choke the life out of him, and the memory frightened him still. 

He sighed, shaking himself out of the past, however recent, and lit his pipe. Finding pipeweed in Laketown had been a blessing. Bilbo finding their clothing and weapons even more so, as Fili's pipe had still been where he'd left it, in a slot sewn into the lining of his coat. The Elf may have found all of his knives, but he hadn't found Fili's pipe. 

He was glad. It had been his father's pipe, one of the last things he had to remember him by, and he would have hated to lose it. It was one of the few things he remembered, sitting on his father's lap, cocooned in strong arms that smelled of the forges, all metal and scorched wood and coal, and pipeweed. His father would light his pipe and Fili would climb into his lap, sitting in silence for perhaps the first moment all day, to just breathe in the smell of his father's presence.

It was a sacred memory to Fili, something that was just for him. As much as it saddened him to know that Kili had been too young to have any memories of their father, he was jealous of his own memory. He only had the one, really. 

“Fili?” he heard, turning at the soft voice. As he suspected, Sigrid stood, half out the door and half in, watching him curiously. She wrapped a shawl around her shoulders as she closed the door and joined him by the rail.

“Is Kili alright?” he asked, wondering what had brought her out on this cold night.

“Yes, he's fine, he's still sleeping,” she replied, giving him a soft smile. “Tauriel is with him.”

“Of course she is,” Fili scoffed, shaking his head at his little brother's lightning fast love affair. And it was love, Fili could see that, at least on Kili's part. Tauriel he was less certain about, despite the fact that she'd come after them and promptly saved Kili's life. Again.

“You do not approve?” Sigrid asked, hesitant and yet determined. Fili liked that about her. She didn't seem sure of anything that had happened during the last few days, but she met each challenge with a quiet determination that he admired. She reminded him of his mother. 

“Not as such,” he replied, trying to get his head together before composing his answer. “It's not that she's an Elf, really, or even that she's a Mirkwood Elf. It's just happened so fast.”

“Ah,” Sigrid said, seemingly relieved.

“They only met a few days ago, when she and her guard captured us, threw us in prison and then all but threw us to the Orcs.”

“It can happen like that, sometimes.” she said thoughtfully. She frowned and looked at him curiously. “But, the Elves didn't let you go?”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “We escaped in barrels, that's how we met your father.”

“Oh, yes. I wasn't sure how it all came together. Da is hardly talkative these days.”

Fili didn't know how to answer that, so he grunted in response, turning his attention back to his pipe. It had gone out, of course, so he lit it again, drawing a deep, soothing mouthful of smoke and holding it in his lungs before letting it go, sighing as the calming effect of it swept through him. It wasn't the best he'd ever had, but it would do. 

“Do all Dwarves smoke?” Sigrid asked, watching him curiously.

“Not all, but most,” he replied. “It's soothing, especially when you have good pipeweed. This isn't that bad, actually. And it's been while since I've had any.” He looked up at her, grateful for the distraction, and for the excuse to talk. He wasn't chatty and hyper in the manner of Kili, but he liked to talk things out when he was confused or frustrated. Perhaps Sigrid was the same. 

“Does your Da not smoke a pipe?”

“No,” she said, dropping her eyes as she picked at a loose sliver on the rail with one finger. “He never had a taste for it, and we couldn't afford it anyway, so I suppose it's a blessing.”

“There were many times growing up that we couldn't afford it, either,” he said, commiserating. “Not so much now, we've been doing alright, now that Kili and I are old enough to earn, but I remember Thorin and Mum being rather grumpy about the lack at times. That was before Kili and I were old enough to smoke, anyway.”

“You grew up poor?” she asked, surprised. “But I thought your Uncle is the King.”

“Oh, he is,” Fili confirmed. “King in Exile, since my grandfather was lost. But there is little to earn within the Blue Mountains, few minerals to mine and only so much work to go around. Even for a Prince of Erebor.”

“Oh, I hadn't realised. I knew you had no supplies when you arrived, but I thought it was simply lost along the way.”

“You're not wrong. We had plenty of supplies when we started the journey, but the obstacles have taken their toll.” She nodded in understanding and stood silently, staring across the lake in the direction of the mountain. 

“Would you like to try?” he asked suddenly, holding out his pipe, not even sure why he'd asked, as she hadn't shown a particular interest. 

“Oh, umm...sure,” she said shyly. He moved a bit closer and handed it to her, adjusting her fingers in a comfortable grip. 

“Now, take a pull, but not too much, just a little to start, and inhale it. Sometimes it's a bit rough, but once you get it, it's lovely and smooth.”

She brought the pipe up to her lips and did as instructed, holding the smoke for a moment before coughing roughly, shaking her head to clear the tears in her eyes.

“Are you alright?” he asked with a chuckle, remembering the first time he'd had a smoke. He'd taken a large mouthful the first time and had turned beet red with the force of his coughing. Thorin and Dwalin had almost pissed themselves laughing, and it had put him off for another few months, until his Mum had brought him his father's old pipe and had instructed him more thoroughly. 

“Yes,” she croaked, still choking a bit as she cleared her lungs. He reached out to take the pipe, but she shook her head and, after a few deep breaths, took another pull. This one she handled much better, holding the smoke before letting it out with a breathy sigh that made his chest tighten and his pulse race.

“That was better,” he said, accepting the pipe as she handed it back, unable to keep from smiling proudly at her persistence. 

“Da always says that anything worth trying is worth failing, at least once.”

“He's a smart one, your Da,” Fili said, enjoying her blush at the compliment. 

“It's nice,” she said, looking out at the lake again. “Once you're not choking on it.”

Fili laughed, looking down at the pipe in his hands, knowing that from now on, this memory would follow the one of his father. He looked up at her again, taking in the delicate features of her face and the curly wisps of hair that escaped her bun. He'd noticed before, how lovely she was, but standing in such relative intimacy and camaraderie, it struck him even more. 

He looked away, certain his own cheeks would be flushed now, to match hers. 

“Earlier, you mentioned that you were old enough to work now? How old are you, if you don't mind my asking. You don't look very old...not all that much older than me, really.” She glanced sideways at him again, a smile curving her lips. “Despite the beard.”

He chuckled, taping the pipe out on the rail and sliding it back into his coat. 

“I fear the answer may shock you,” he replied, turning and leaning his side against the rail so he could better face her, pleased when she did the same. The night was cold, but he did not want it to end here. Not yet. 

“Da says I'm not old enough to get a job yet, though I take care of the house, as well as Bain and Tilda, and do all the cooking and mending. I've taken on a few mending jobs for others, so that helps bring in some income.”

“I know the feeling. I was eager to start work and earn some gold for us, especially with Kili growing like crazy, but I had to finish my apprenticeship first.”

“What do you do?” Sigrid asked, her lips quirking in a half smile. “When you're not climbing through people's toilets and then saving them from Orcs, that is.”

He laughed, smiling broadly at her cheek. “Hey, that was some of my best work,” he shot back, smiling wider when she laughed. 

“Seriously though, I'm a blacksmith. Like Thorin. And...my father, when he was alive.”

“Oh, I'm sorry,” she said, her smile taking on a sadness that he understood well. 

“It's all right, I hardly remember him. But following his boots into his chosen craft, and finding that I'm well suited to it, that made me proud to be his son.”

“You're lucky, then,” she said, and he nodded. 

“That I am. And now that Kili is safe, perhaps luckier still. If we can take back the mountain, then I'll be able to put my craft into action. There will be plenty of smith work repairing Erebor.”

“There will be a call for a smith here, too, once it's all said and done. There always is.”

“Indeed,” he agreed, appreciating the insight. “Perhaps I could help with that...if all goes well.”

She smiled at him again, and he felt his heart jump and then beat faster, just enough to catch his breath as their eyes held. She really was very lovely. Fili wondered then, if the Durin line had fallen under some curse. He began to suspect that he would follow his uncle and his brother, in loving someone who wasn't a Dwarf. He looked out toward the lake and pushed the thought away. It was far too soon to tell. 

“Anyway, you've avoided the question rather neatly, but I'm not so easily distracted,” she said, and Fili looked back at her, her lovely face gazing at him mischievously.

“What question?”

“How old are you?” she asked again, and this time, he answered.

“I'm still quite young, you're right,” he replied. “Barely an adult by our standards. I'm only just eighty-two.”

“Eighty-two!” she repeated, shock written across her face. “But...that's almost twice my Da's age!”

“I told you the answer might shock you,” he said simply, enjoying her astonishment. “I understand that humans age faster than Dwarves...and live shorter lives. I may live to be three hundred, or longer, so eighty-two isn't very old at all.”

“Still, that's...you're old enough to be my grandfather!”

“If I were human, I could be,” he said, his stomach turning at the thought that she would be put off by his age. It had never bothered him before, he had worked hard for decades at his craft and had seen many places and people in his life and he was but a youngling to his people. But to a human, he must seem ancient, on the cusp of death. 

“But you're not, of course,” she said, still staring at him with amazement. 

“No, indeed. You were right, in your estimation that I am not much older than you...not in years, but in relation to our lifespans. You look like a woman full grown, but your eyes are young and you are not married, still living with your father. I would assume that you are on the cusp of adulthood as well as I, although perhaps the opposite side of it?”

“You are correct in that,” she said, still shaking her head. “I am seventeen. I will be considered a woman on my next birthday. Which is not terribly soon, but soon enough.”

“Seventeen!” Now it was Fili's turn to be shocked. 

“Indeed. It's funny to see the shock on your face, since I'm sure I looked like that only a few minutes ago.”

“You did look shocked but...seventeen?” Fili was stunned. He turned, gripping the railing with his hands, tightly. Only minutes before he'd been worried that she would see him differently because of his age, and now he was struggling with it from the other side. Seventeen was still a child to a Dwarf, not in the way people looked at him and Kili as children because of their exuberant behaviour, but a real child. Barely old enough to grip a sword.

And to think, he'd been having...thoughts, about her.

“Fili,” she said, stepping a little closer to grab his attention. “I hope you'll understand my shock now. You're right, I look like a woman, because in all aspects, I am one. I may not be eighteen yet, but I could still get married with my Da's permission, and in April, I won't even need that.”

“I had no idea our races aged so differently, not really.”

“How old did you think I was?” she asked, and he turned to look at her carefully. 

“Perhaps...I'm not sure. No younger than thirty.”

“And I'd been thinking that you could not be older than thirty.”

The tension eased as they both laughed, and he allowed himself to breathe a little easier. His near panic attack had told him one thing. He was enchanted by her, her beauty, her enthusiasm, her cheerful outlook in the face of crippling adversity. He was doomed in the way of his uncle and brother, after all. His heart had made a swift leap, and he hadn't even realised how quickly such a thing could happen. 

Kili's feelings for Tauriel began to make clear sense to him, for the first time. 

But now he knew as well, that human lives burned bright and hot, but oh, so very short. He had no time to waste. Once the mountain was secure, he would be back. And if she felt the same...then no one would keep them apart. 

“Do you think, can we still be friends?” she asked hesitantly, and he began to hope, even believe, that she could come to love him, too. 

“We can be friends,” Fili agreed, reaching out and taking her hand, sliding his thumb across her wrist and meeting her lovely eyes with his. They widened slightly, but she didn't pull away, only smiled at him brightly, leaning a shade closer. 

“Perhaps, we can be even more.”

“I'd like that,” she replied, reaching down and taking his other hand, and his heart beat so hard he was afraid it would burst. Is this how it happened? One moment he was getting on with his life and the next, everything had changed. He had been drawn to her from the first, and it was getting harder to resist the pull. Did life turn on a coin for every Dwarf when they met the One that owned their heart?

They shared a long look, until she blushed and looked down and he knew, without a doubt, that she was thinking the same as he. His plan was set now, there could be no turning back. But there were other things to think of first. They were going to be at least two days behind the others, but now that Kili was healing, they had to think about moving on, and soon. They could stay through the next day, and then depart on the following morning. 

He noticed that Sigrid was shivering, her shawl mean protection against the icy wind.

“You're cold,” he said, watching her with concern. 

“I'll be fine,” she replied, her chin lifting a little in defiance, but Fili was not fooled. “I'm not ready to go inside yet.”

“Nor am I,” he replied. “But it would be remiss of me to let you freeze just for the sake of your company. Here.”

He unfastened his buckle swiftly and pulled his heavy outer coat off, swinging it up around her shoulders before she could protest. It was quite large across the top, the fur encompassing her chin, while it hung to just above her knees. Still, it was leather and fur and Fili knew well how warm it was. 

“What about you?” she protested, but he only scoffed, redoing the buckle around his leather jerkin.

“Oh, I still have several layers, and we Dwarves tend to run hot as it is. Besides, the line of Durin is built strong. We endure.”

“If you're sure,” she said quietly, giving him the sweetest smile he had ever been graced with in his life. It was all worth it, just for that. 

“I am. And while I'm happy to stay out here all night talking with you, perhaps we'd better go in soon. We don't know what the tomorrow will bring. It's Durin's Day after all, and that means they'll be entering the mountain at sundown.”

“Do you think they'll wake the dragon?” she was worried, it was in the tremor of her voice, and written across her features. 

“I don't know,” he relied honestly. “I hope not. But dragons are canny and imbued with magic. There's no telling what will happen when they go into the mountain.”

They both turned their eyes to the mountain once more, the weight of possibility weighing on them. It was a heavy burden, and Fili sought to lift it, at least a little. 

“I think I'd like one more smoke before we go in,” he said, turning back to her with what he hoped was an encouraging grin. “Join me?”

“I'd like that,” she agreed, grinning right back. He moved closer, noticing her eyes widening. He supposed he could have told her what he needed, but it was more fun this way. And telling. As he moved even closer, her breathing sped up, and he had no doubt that her heart was pounding. It was only right, after all, as his heart was battering inside his chest as well. 

He reached out and grasped one side of his coat, smirking up at her from under his lashes before pulling it open just the slightest bit, aware that she still held it in her hand. He knew exactly where the pipe was, so it was the work of a moment to take it out, the back of his hand brushing hers as it slipped past. 

She let out a huff of air when he held it up and she realised what he'd been about. She smiled weakly, but her eyes were dark and glowing with heat. He'd only just realised that she was as attracted to him as he was to her, but the proof shot through him, and he was even more eager to get to the mountain and help Thorin with the claiming, to make it safe and prosperous once more. He had found a reason beyond the quest and the throne that he kept telling himself he would want, eventually. 

He'd found his One, in the most unlikely of places, and there was no erasing the fact of it. As he filled the pipe and lit it, passing it to her between pulls, he felt contentment welling up inside him like it never had before. Life was the work of a moment, he thought then. One moment following the last, preceding the next. 

And in one single moment, everything could change.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so here we go. This chapter and the next will focus on the lads, and I need them to take this story in an unforeseen direction. Trust me, it'll all work out. Hang in there!


End file.
